The U.S. House of Representatives House Financial Services Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee recently held a hearing about reducing waste, fraud, and abuse at HUD. During the hearing, the Subcommittee reviewed the most recent report from HUD Inspector General David Montoya, which identified more than $770 million in questionable costs and included recommendations for putting $739.5 million in HUD funds to better use. The Subcommittee questioned whether HUD’s largest programs, including the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program, lack oversight making them especially vulnerable to waste, fraud, and abuse.
This is the first time that the use of CDBG funds has been brought into question. The CDBG program, the largest source of federal financial assistance in support of state and local neighborhood revitalization, housing rehabilitation, and economic development activities, was examined by the Financial Services Committee in the oversight plan for the 113th Congress. In the report, the Committee noted its concerns about the uses of CDBG funds.
